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Yesterday, the CFPB published the first batch (7,700) of consumer narratives or stories to the Public Consumer Complaint Database it began in 2011. We've used the database to publish five reports (so far) analyzing complaint trends in markets ranging from credit cards to student loans but we have also long urged the voluntary addition of stories to the data fields. Now, consumers can learn if what happened to them happened to anyone else. Now, researchers can track which banks are more responsive to particular problems and which ignore their customers. A good resource is now an excellent resource.

130 lawmakers today became the latest voices in a growing chorus calling for an Executive Order from President Obama requiring federal contractors to disclose their political spending. Two letters—one signed by 26 Senators and another by 104 Representatives—follow an April letter signed by 50 major organizations and more than half a million petitions delivered to the White House urging the president to shine a light on dark money spending.

Last week, Pope Francis took the unusual step of releasing a 192-page letter, known as an Encyclical, to senior church officials. The Pope’s Encyclical calls for greater reliance on public transportation and criticizes over-reliance on driving as a prime cause of global warming pollution.

At tomorrow's Ways and Means hearing on funding for transportation, Chairman Ryan should declare a pause to federal funding of new highway lanes until Congress figures out a long-term fix to fund transportation.

With 2016 candidates already raising eye-popping amounts from large donors for their campaigns, Sen. Durbin (IL) introduced legislation today that would give new power to small donors in our elections.